Notes on Rome Lo1

Today we had a test and I think I did fairly okay. We are now moving onto Rome and these are my notes for Lo 1 city state and Empire of the roman republic.


The Romans imitated the Greek civilization and also improved it as the copied it. They formed tribal groups. The Greek city states had begun to plant colonies in southern Italy as early as eighth century B.C. Romans acquired the skills that enabled them to build their unique political institutions. Patricians means men or fathers. The Romans had a Republic and Republic is a system of city-state government in which decision making power was shared between the Senate and assemblies of male citizens. Plebeians was the Roman common people including workers and farmers. The Romans had a Senate as well and it was an government assembly appointed by the king. the consuls was two senators who led the government and military for one year. The dictator in the Roman republic was a single leader with full decision making powers appointed with a maximum of six months.The tribunes was magistrates elected by the plebeians who eventually gained power and initiated the veto laws. A client was a person who provides personal services in the return for money and protection from a patron. Now a patron is a wealthy person who supports others with money and protection in exchange for personal services. A pontiff in ancient Rome is one of the Republics leading priests. The Romans judged themselves according to values. They had a value which was a belief that notably even more than one government systems, the communities survival and prosperity depended on a god or goddess who was thought to take a particular interest it its destiny. Paterfamilias was "family father" in ancient Rome who had unlimited power over its household. A matron was the title of honor given to a married woman in ancient Rome. Another value included the belief that it was the right and duty of the men of the community to fight its wars, and hence also to share in its government. The men would take it for granted that the women of Rome had no right or duty to share in politics and government, and that women needed guardians for all legal transactions because of their "light-mindedness."